for the rest of us death will be a relief

[praevaricatio]

Comments

[scrutinously]

Hey. She's going to try. She can't guarantee anything, like we can't guarantee anything. But, we'll do our best. If this happened in our world, our parents would help. Right?

( If they can, they will.

"Also, you're not just hanging out here, though you are lucky enough to experience Beckford's cooking, you have a place with me. I don't have a lot going on right now and your mom will call me back. We'll go from there."

He hopes his brother got through to her and that he doesn't have to double tap a voicemail. )

[patrols]

[Lindsay glances down at her watch.]

After dinner we should have enough time to hit up a Target or something. Get you some supplies for at least the next few days.

[Because it's definitely going to take that long.]

Slayers unfortunately are not equipped for multiverse stuff unless it's a demon dimension so I gotta go find an expert.

[unforgivably]

I've done the 'shirt off my back' thing. It gets old. We'll get everyone all new threads.

( Is he trying too hard. Whatever. At least he's trying. )

Do you have any more questions for my children or is the interrogation over for now?

[meanestgirl]

[She shakes her head. "No, that's all I had. I'll see if I can get in touch with the other people affected and we'll go from there."

And with that they'll eat, and make a Target run for clothes and toiletries, before finally making it back to Damon's place. Fortunately for them, their father opts for more rather than less, so they each have their own bedroom. It's still a small space, however, so while she does want to talk to her brother, she doesn't want Damon eavesdropping. So she texts Gray on her new phone.]

So what's the plan? Just sit here and wait for them to figure it out?

[scrutinously]

I don't see any other choice. We're at a loss and disconnected from ( everything. their lives. their parents. their real parents? it hurts his head to type, but ) our world.

[meanestgirl]

What if they decide it's not worth it? What if they decide to just leave us here with our fake not-parents and no way to actually do anything about it?

[Because that may be her biggest fear. Getting too comfortable in this world that isn't hers.]

[scrutinously]

First off, you know our parents. I don't care if he's a vampire and she's in Kansas, or wherever. Dad will pretend his doesn't care, or say nothing, and then he's going to fight. Hard. And all mom will do? Is care. And, if the solution is more complicated, which, Steph, from what Lindsay said in Target about the possibilities... famous scientists are talking about labs and papers and other worlds. There are worlds we have in common. Prison worlds. Aunt Bonnie's world where she kept the love of her life. And all of the same names. I'm not saying I don't want to get back to mom and dad, I'm just saying it might not be the weekend.

Also it's Christmas this week and that's really weird.

[meanestgirl]

[Stephanie sets her jaw because is this really their mother? Because she never would have thought her mother would have left her dad, but here we are!! In freaky bizarro world where she ran off with a guy from Kansas.

She hates it here. She's only been here maybe six hours, but she hates it here.]

Maybe if we're lucky, Santa will bring us a way home.

[Yeah, she's going to be stuck on this for a while.]

[scrutinously]

You think Santa's real in this world, too?

[meanestgirl]

I don't know, but I hope so. This world is bizarre enough as it is, it might be nice to have something normal.

[A pause.]

...Okay, I may have actually lost my mind.

[scrutinously]

You haven't.

You helped me through me losing my mind senior year. So, if it happens, I'll be right there here.

[meanestgirl]

I hate it here. Nothing makes sense.

[scrutinously]

( It does in its' own way. But his mind works differently. )

Maybe you'll feel different when we come face to face with mom.

[meanestgirl]

Mom and her boyfriend and her bunker.

[There's a quiet pause.]

Mom and I barely get along on a good day, why would she want to be around me without biological imperative on the table?

[scrutinously]

Can't help you with the bunker, but at least it sounds like she's not being kept there. She went willingly.

Instinct, I hope. Because even though she didn't see us coming, we're here.

[meanestgirl]

[Another pause, this one longer because she can't avoid the stirring uncertainty in her gut, but eventually she says:]

I hope you're right.

[Which she does not say often so enjoy it, Gray.]

[scrutinously]

( For all her flaws and their father's temper they don't share, though hers is more readily on the surface, he is still her sister. He has seen her compassion alongside her withering stare, or dropping her friends in an instant (which was partially his fault), but he hopes she doesn't fall back onto old, early high school patterns. They won't get anywhere if she stays combative. He worries for her, worried about what it'd mean for her to go to college. But, he spent one year away from her and the house and the high school didn't burn down.

He hoped that taking care of herself didn't always come at the expense of not letting others in. He knows firsthand he can't trust everyone. Dad's old "friend" helped that along. But, he worked past it by January-February and turned his grades around.

His sister has always been smarter without trying, where Gray is the studier. He needs to make the effort. It also came naturally, burying himself in the town's problematic history. Wanting to feel closer to his grandparents. )

So, we're going to be meeting a whole lot of extended family we never would, otherwise.

You nervous?

[meanestgirl]

I don't know. It feels so weird. I'm worried I'm going to trip up and mention that the wrong person is dead.

[And then set off a tidal wave of family fights.]

[scrutinously]

They can't help who's in our world and who isn't. I know why you're worried, but I'd rather endure a little awkwardness than police ourselves completely.

Just do your best.

They'll ask about us. Our lives. Focus on that.

[meanestgirl]

I'll try.

If Uncle Stefan is still alive do you think he and Aunt Caroline still got married?

[scrutinously]

I don't think so, he's traveling with someone named Buffy. And Caroline's doing all this emotional damage control, but she's also not in Mystic Falls right now. I'm not saying they couldn't have two different missions, but from what we heard, they always made a good team.

You can always ask. Talk to Dad.

[meanestgirl]

Maybe. Maybe tomorrow.

[And she'll probably leave things there for right now, at least with Grayson. She lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling, and then ... because she's curious and she can't stop asking questions. In end, she reaches for her phone because she's still not sure she can face her father who is not her father and ask these questions, so she texts him instead. To Damon:]

If I ask you a bunch of questions about how things are here based on what I know about my world will you answer them?

[unforgivably]

I will.

[meanestgirl]

[Okay. Let's start with the most relevant then.]

Did Uncle Stefan and Aunt Caroline get married?

[unforgivably]

Not in this universe. Things were awkward for a summer before we had Heretic problems.